Changes

==The Motives of Trade==

Among the earliest regions we see large-scale urbanism develop is in southern Mesopotamia, a region located in modern day southern Iraq (Figure 1). Increasingly in the early fourth millennium BC, urban patterns began to form in southern Mesopotamia, including in places such as Eridu, located near ancient Ur, where one of the first large temples from this period is evident.<ref>For a discussion on the development of Eridu (pg. 135) see: Maisels, Charles Keith. 1999. ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0415096596/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0415096596&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=c6682a192fb0650be063c649cf853b25 The Emergence of Civilization: From Hunting and Gathering to Agriculture, Cities, and the State in the Near East]''. Repr. London: Routledge.</ref>

Perhaps, though, the first true great city that developed in this time frame was Uruk. This town grew to about 250 hectares in size in this period, which is about the size of downtown London, with two large temple districts that were devoted to major gods of the city (Figures 2 and 3).<ref>See (pg. 103) Algaze, Guillermo. 2008. ''[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/022614237X/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=022614237X&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=6fb3eb342739f61d36ea83b58b29670c Ancient Mesopotamia at the Dawn of Civilization: The Evolution of an Urban Landscape]''. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.</ref> This growth was largely fueled by Uruk’s abilities, through its connections along developing canals and riverine systems, to access trade from far away regions in Anatolia (modern Turkey), Iran, the Persian Gulf, and elsewhere. As the region around Uruk was resource poor, except for being agriculturally fertile, precious stones, timber, gold, and even stone building materials were needed from areas outside of southern Mesopotamia. Thus, trade and location were critical in why the city was able to grow.